SPORTING KANSAS CITY MANAGER PETER VERMES
On the match:
“I think that we had a tough time with them man-to-man. They came and they ran us off the field in most cases. It was hard for us to play through them.”
On San Jose’s performance:
“We gave up a lot of silly balls, but they forced them. They deserved the points tonight. (We’ve got to) get back to work and get ready for the next game.”
SPORTING KANSAS CITY FORWARD GERSO FERNANDES
On the overall match:
“We didn’t start the game very well. We suffered two goals in the first 10, 15 minutes and that was very hard for us because we had a plan for the game and with those two goals everything changed and we had to chase the game. I think it just didn’t go our way tonight.”
On how they’ll prepare next weekend for New England:
“We know this is soccer and sometimes teams have bad moments and now we are facing a bad moment, but we are a team and as team we will go through it.”
On what went wrong today:
“I think everything was wrong. The chances we had and didn’t score and we didn’t defend very well as a team. I think everything just didn’t go well. It was just a bad night for everybody, and we will just forget it and think about the next game.”
On playing against San Jose’s different style:
“We already knew that they would play that way and we tried to play our way to the best we could. Tonight just went wrong for us. Congratulations to San Jose. Of course they won and they did a good job. Let’s not forget that, too.”
SPORTING KANSAS CITY MIDFIELDER KELYN ROWE
On the overall match:
“We lost on bad spots and they did a very good job of taking advantage of those and they put away some good chances.”
On his directions as a substitute:
“Go out and play. Got to make something happen. I think we created some chances actually, some good ones. Just got unlucky to finish. [Tim] Melia made some good saves and I think the missed penalty wasn’t what we wanted, but we got another one and put it away."
On looking ahead to New England next week:
“We got to get back to our ways, to the Sporting way of keeping the ball and closing things down and making sure that teams just can’t break on us. In the past, they’ve been very good at making sure the ball stays in our attacking half and breaking up any kind of clearance they have, making it very tough for teams to get out and we need to get back to our ways in that sense and just be clinical and confident near the goal.”
SAN JOSE EARTHQUAKES HEAD COACH MATIAS ALMEYDA
On key factors influencing the result against Sporting Kansas City:
“The team is finding the way; they are finding a style. We knew about the opponent we were facing, and the players understood the way they needed to play this match, and I think that’s where the key factors were. The delivery, the sacrifice, the collective play, the determination of every player, and I think that’s why we were able to make a difference.”
On preparing for Sporting Kansas City and getting a fast start:
“The goals were important for the confidence of the players. I think it was an intelligent game knowing we couldn’t give them any advantage, so our players understood what we wanted. We had patience to control the ball and determine the moment and the place when we should pressure to recover the ball and from there start our counter-attacks. But I think the players did a good job understanding the game plan.”
On Danny Hoesen’s performance:
“Danny had an issue with his visa. We weren’t able to have him the entire time. He was travelling to Holland and stayed for 10 days, and 10 days out of training sessions are a lot, especially to adapt to a new style. We had to convince him that he was a complete player, and this is the way that he should play, making sacrifices defensively for the team and being convinced he can score a lot of goals. Today, not only did he play well attacking, but he also helped a lot defensively.”
SAN JOSE EARTHQUAKES FORWARD DANNY HOESEN
On the confidence level of the team:
“I think we played a very good game at home against Portland. I think we also played a decent game at Houston, it just didn’t go our way. I think we had a good training week and the confidence was definitely there.”
On if he felt free on the field tonight:
“It’s easy to say after you score two goals, but I always felt free. The coach has always had confidence in me. It depends on how you feel on the day, how much you can run, how much can you do for the team. Sometimes it’s good and sometimes it’s bad.”
On being clinical in front of goal tonight:
“If you miss chances, you should forget about it and go for the next one. Against Portland, I got in some good positions and didn’t score and today I did score. So, hopefully I can build on this confidence and keep going.”
On if he and his teammates are having more fun now:
“For sure. If this system works, and the freedom we get to play, then it’s a lot of fun. You see people smiling on the field. You see people working for each other. You see these guys every day. You see these guys maybe more than your own family. You need to work together and like each other. After a win, it’s a lot easier.”
SAN JOSE EARTHQUAKES DEFENDER NICK LIMA
On his game performance:
“The team gives me a role, Matias [Almeyda] gives me a role and I am going to work my best to do it. Tonight, it was to shut down Johnny Russell and be on him. Towards the end of the game, Gerso was on my side and not give him any room to breathe either. That was my role and I just wanted to go out there and do it.”
On momentum from tonight’s win and looking forward to Seattle next week:
“Build on tonight. Tonight gives us confidence but we build on it, we go back to the training pitch with not much time but whatever it may be, we continue to work things out communication-wise. That’s a huge part of it and we get a little better for the next game.”
On team communication progressing on field:
“Yeah, guys are bought in. To be able to see that when we are bought in, we work together and it’s working. Its positive reinforcement for the group and I think we need to continue that with our dialogue together and I think it’s showing.”
